Howdy all.
In various places covering this topic the conclusion always seems to that “Hamilton is faster and Button only won because Hamilton had an off year and too many collisions”. I canot see this. I think Hamilton is faster on single laps and he can push closer to the limits but I think Buttons consistency and Race Craft more than make up for not being so good in qualy. I think they are both very good drivers and Hamilton can perform better than last year but I still expect it to be very close. Also I think Button performs better in slower traffic and wont go for ‘more points or no points’ approach Hamilton does in some of his overtakes, is that he spent a long time in slow cars. This is just my opinion but what does everyone else think? I say they are equal.

He is very good at overtaking. Canada, Spa and Monza with Schumi and Hamilton I think are all very good examples from the 2011 season. I do think he needs to improve in qualifying times though. They are not terrible times but they are not amazing either.

Hamilton for me, Button got very lucky with wins last year.
Plus the whole british media seem to be on the Button band-wagon.
Plus British fans let their pride get to their head and always over-hype Button for no good reason.

Hamilton for me, Button got very lucky with wins last year.
Plus the whole british media seem to be on the Button band-wagon.
Plus British fans let their pride get to their head and always over-hype Button for no good reason.

The media are with Button!?! Hamilton is definitely the more popular driver. Also I don’t think you can say anyone was lucky. Racing is racing and things happen. If you say Canada and Hungary were luck then I don’t think you can really say China and Abu Dhabi were real wins either.

Ultimately, drivers of their caliber will have strengths and weaknesses that make it difficult to compare in a straight up “who is better?” way. As we saw, it can go either way. I think Hollis is right in that they are in a way equal, but I think certain things will play into one or the others’ hands. Button’s calm and calculating approach plays dividends over the long term in both the race and the championship. On the other hand, Hamilton’s ragged, on-the-edge driving style and awesome speed allow him to put himself into a good position to begin with as well as reward him with needed wins and big points hauls. If they continue on the same team like this for more years, I suspect the debate will become a long and historied one ala Prost vs. Senna (hopefully without the animosity). Because I can see the pendulum swinging back and forth over who beats who each year.

Two years ago I would have said Hamilton without a second thought. Recently though, especially last season (and 2010 also), Hamilton has just been in too many scrapes and crashes.

Over one lap, I still think Hamilton has the legs on Button- although not by much- but over race distance Button is a lot consistent, he looks after his tyres better and he doesn’t get into nearly as many crashes as Hamilton.

Button’s main weakness is his qualifying- rarely it’s good enough to get him ahead of Hamilton on the grid. However, we’ve seen on numerous occasions that Button’s consistency and ability to stay out of trouble has seen him finish the race in front of Hamilton.

Last season Button probably did get “lucky” a few times, but that said I think he’s more than capable of matching Lewis Hamilton. McLaren look very strong so far- on a par with Red Bull- and Button has a very good chance of being right at the top by the end of the season. Of course Hamilton will be as well, but I really wouldn’t like to put bets on who will be higher up.

The thing I love about Jenson is that even when he’s incredibly unlucky (Spa and Canada spring to mind) he seems to still find his way onto the podium or even end up winning. Hamilton on the other hand… I think Lewis is a quicker driver, but I think Jenson is a better driver. As far as ability, they’re about equal because their specialities in different areas amount to about the same amount of skill, in my opinion.

When it comes to who I like in F1, it’s normally down to personality. And that’s why I’m not a Hamilton fan but very much a fan of Button.

@HollisGraham Denial, have you not seen the recent covers of Autosport and F1 racing?? Button this and Button that, they will all be licking his a$$ if they were given half a chance, Hamilton only got lucky in Abu Dhabi, because Vettel got a puncture. Button has has had all his wins on luck.

I gotta agree with Faraz. Although I’m going to get a lot of flak for it, especially here on f1f1anatic, but Jenson is not half as remarkable as the British media make him out to be.

He’s had a couple of strong seasons in entire career (2004 and 2011). 2010 was a decent year for him as well. I feel his talent is amplified because of 2 reasons -

1) His superstar teammate has had his poorest year yet (but they still ended on the same number of wins)
2) Mclaren’s strong quali performance. Mclaren was very solid over the entire 2011 season. Maybe they were 2nd best, yet they were comfortably ahead of Ferrari and Mercedes. If the gaps were a little closer amongst the 4 teams in quali, Button would have suffered a whole lot more.

Hats off to Button though.. whatever critics like me might say, he still managed to beat Hamilton and finish one position higher in the championship than he should have.

Ultimately I think Hamilton is the better driver.
Button is great in drying conditions, but thats it.
If the car don’t do exactly what he wants it to, he is nowhere to be seen.
Hamilton on the other hand can at least get the car somewhere even when it doesn’t work at all. Hamilton is also a lot quicker in qualifying.
In terms of race craft.. well its close, but I think Button usually drives more intelligently and ultimately that gives him the advantage.
I think Button is a more intelligent driver, but Hamilton is the better driver.